You fall in love with the idea first — Costa Rica, surfing, transformation — and then you hit the same wall so many families hit: wait, which program is this again?
It’s a fair question. Surf Term and Surf & Service share a beach, a name, and a lot of the same spirit. But they’re not the same experience, and the difference matters — because it’s the difference between a season of your life and two weeks that change how you see the world. Here’s an honest look at both, so you can feel which one is actually calling to you.
Surf Term: The Five Weeks That Change Everything
There’s something that happens around week three, almost every time. The homesickness fades. The nerves about the surf, about making friends, about being away from everything familiar — they quiet down. And what’s left is a kid who’s figured out they can do hard things.
That’s what five weeks gives you that two weeks can’t: time. Time to stumble, to get back up, to stop performing and start actually becoming. Your mornings are spent in project-based learning that doesn’t feel like school because it isn’t — it’s built around real problems, real thinking, real curiosity. Your afternoons belong to the ocean, to a board that humbles you before it teaches you anything.
Surf Term is for students in grades 6-9, and it runs November to December. If you’re picturing a full season away — not a vacation, not a quick trip, but an actual chapter — this is it. It’s for the kid who needs more than a taste of independence. It’s for the parent who’s ready to watch their child come home different, in the best way.
Surf & Service: Two Weeks, All Impact
Surf & Service asks something different of you. It’s shorter — two weeks instead of five — but don’t mistake short for smaller impact. This is a program built for teens who are ready to look outward, not just inward. You’ll spend part of your time learning to surf and settling into life in Costa Rica, and the rest working shoulder-to-shoulder with local communities on service that actually matters.
There’s a particular kind of growth that happens when you give something instead of just receiving it. You stop thinking about yourself for a while. You start noticing what your hands can build, what your presence can mean to people whose lives look nothing like yours. That’s the heart of Surf & Service.
It’s open to students in grades 8-12, which means it also reaches teens who’ve outgrown Surf Term but still want that spark. And because it’s two weeks instead of five, it fits into a summer the way a longer commitment sometimes can’t.
So Which Adventure Is Yours?
Honestly, it’s less about which program is “better” and more about which season of your life you’re in.
If you have five weeks and you’re craving depth — real transformation, the kind that only comes from sustained time away — Surf Term is where that happens. If you have two weeks and you’re craving purpose — the kind that comes from service, from giving instead of just growing — Surf & Service is where that lives.
And if you’re in 6th or 7th grade, the choice is already made for you: Surf Term is where you start.
Wherever you land, we’d love to have you as a part of our Discover Term community. Whether it’s for two weeks or five, you’re in for the experience of a lifetime. One that won’t just change your teen for a season, but for their entire life.
